


Study Break

by storm_of_sharp_things



Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Ficlet, Fluff and Humor, Linear Algebra - Freeform, M/M, Mathematics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-27
Updated: 2020-02-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:35:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22928803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/storm_of_sharp_things/pseuds/storm_of_sharp_things
Summary: Arthur is working, Eames desires otherwise.PSA: And math is very very important.
Relationships: Arthur/Eames (Inception)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 48





	Study Break

**Author's Note:**

  * For [IAmANonnieMouse](https://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmANonnieMouse/gifts).



> For mousie, who really **really REALLY** needed a study break!

“What the hell are you doing, darling?” Eames draped himself over the back of the sofa to rest his chin on Arthur’s bare shoulder and look down at the notebook in Arthur’s lap. “Is this _maths?_ It looks like equations for opening a portal to another dimension.”

He reached down and gently turned a few pages back and forth. “Tell the truth now, are you summoning demons?” He brightened and slung himself around the sofa to plop next to Arthur. “Are you arranging to have Cobb dragged to hell? Arthur!” He bounced. “It’s not even my birthday yet!”

Arthur sighed. “It’s linear algebra, Eames.”

“No hell portals?” At Arthur’s head shake, he pouted. “Well, that’s no fun then. Is it more important than coming to bed and having sex?”

“Not necessarily.”

“Not...” Eames leaned away. “Who are you and what have you done with my Arthur?”

“Eames.” Arthur gave him a patient look. “I’m working.”

“You’re scribbling ant trails and wire shapes and tables of weird numbers.”

“And you’re not as ignorant as you like to pretend.”

Eames gave him a leer. “Careful there, love, that was almost a compliment.” He stroked a finger suggestively down Arthur’s arm.

“Linear equations and diagrams and matrices,” Arthur corrected in a determined tone.

Eames sighed heavily and leaned back. “Okay, but why? What good is it? I’ve never used advanced maths ever in my life once I left school.”

Arthur gave him a sharp look. “No, because other people use it on your behalf. I’m using it right now to optimize my algorithms for data searches. I’ve also used it to do cursory facial recognition scans in video databases and create eigenimages from the results to give to you, you ungrateful bastard, to refine your forges.”

Eames screwed his mouth to one side doubtfully and crossed his arms.

Arthur looked away from the tantalizing landscape of ink that resulted and continued. “Our architects use it for rotations, scaling, and perspectives in linear mapping, which is necessary for translating 2D ideas to 3D dreams, including, and especially, paradoxical architecture. Traffic networks and routing can be described and solved by matrices, which means creating efficient mazes to route projections away.”

Eames hmph’d, rolling his eyes.

“And I use it in data analysis, decision prediction, programming and hacking, and when I’m working with cryptography. And that’s just off the top of my head, you liberal arts savage.”

“Hey now, no need to get personal, poppet.”

“And what’s worst,” Arthur growled, tossing his notebook onto the coffee table and sliding over to settle astride Eames’ thighs on the sofa and glare down at him, “is that you know all this perfectly well and you’re just playing dumb to break my concentration and get me to pay attention to you.”

Eames grinned at him delightedly, settling his hands on Arthur’s hips and snugging him closer. “And?”

Arthur leaned in to brush their mouths together. “And it worked, dammit.”


End file.
